240-Robert

240-Robert
John Bennett Perry, Joanna Cassidy and Mark Harmon
Genre	Drama
Created by	Rick Rosner
Written by	Charlene Bralver Lew Hunter Simon Muntner James Schmerer Anthony Yerkovich
Directed by	Richard Benedict Phil Bondelli John Florea Bruce Kessler Sigmund Neufeld, Jr. Christian I. Nyby II Sutton Roley Ric Rondell
Starring	John Bennett Perry Mark Harmon Joanna Cassidy Stephan Burns Pamela Hensley
Theme music composer	Pete Carpenter Mike Post
Composer(s)	Mike Post (1.1, 1.3) Pete Carpenter (1.1, 1.3) Ken Heller J. A. C. Redford (1.6, co-composer) Murray MacLeod (1.6) Harry Betts (1.10, 1.13) Mark Snow (2.1, 2.2, 2.3)
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	2
No. of episodes	16 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Rick Rosner
Producer(s)	Richard M. Rosenbloom
Editor(s)	Dann Cahn Mike Renaud Randy Roberts Jack Tucker
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	45–48 minutes
Production company(s)	Filmways Television Rosner Television
Distributor	Orion Television Distribution
Release
Original network	ABC
Audio format	Monaural
Original release	August 28, 1979 (1979-08-28) – March 21, 1981 (1981-03-21)

240-Robert is an American drama series that ran on ABC from 1979 to 1981. The series title is a reference to the call-sign designation for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department's search and rescue/paramedic teams.

Synopsis

The series chronicles the missions of "240-Robert", a specialized unit of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (LASD), that utilized four wheel drive vehicles and a helicopter. Most of the assignments were sea/air/land search and rescue operations in the extensive (over 4,000 sq mi (10,000 km²) jurisdiction. The show's creator was Rick Rosner (himself an LASD reserve deputy), who created the hit series CHiPs two years earlier for NBC.

The vehicles used at that time were 1979 Ford Broncos, while the helicopter was a Hughes HA-500C (similar in design to the current MD 500).

The series was based on real life cases encountered by the LASD's Emergency Services Detail. The real life ESD is actually headquartered in East Los Angeles. Rick Rosner took artistic liberty and portrayed the headquarters as a beach-side station. The actual filming location was at a State of California ranger station located at Sycamore Cove in Ventura County, California.

Cast

• Deputy Theodore Roosevelt "Trap" Applegate III (John Bennett Perry)
• Deputy Dwayne "Thib" Thibideaux (Mark Harmon, episodes 1-13)
• Deputy Morgan Wainwright (Joanna Cassidy, episodes 1-13), the unit's helicopter pilot
• Deputy Brett Cueva (Stephen W. Burns, episodes 14-16), who replaced Thib
• Deputy Sandy Harper (Pamela Hensley, episodes 14-16), the new pilot of the unit

Cassidy and Hensley both had an expert female helicopter pilot take over for them in the actual helicopter flight sequences; her identity was unknown as of early February 2013.

Cancellation

Harmon and Cassidy left the series when their contracts expired after the first season. Burns and Hensley were brought in to replace them, but the second season (returning mid-season in early 1981 due to an actor's strike) only lasted like three episodes before ABC cancelled it due to poor ratings.

Episode list

Season 1

1. "The Apology"
2. "Stuntman"
3. "Bathysphere"
4. "Models"
5. "Acting Sergeant"
6. "Bank Job"
7. "Out of Sight"
8. "Time Bomb"
9. "Double Trouble"
10. "Poison Air"
11. "Earthquake"
12. "The Applicant"
13. "Oil and Water"

Season 2

1. "A Cool Welcome"
2. "First Loss"
3. "Hostages"

External links

• 240-Robert at the Internet Movie Database
• 240-Robert at TV.com
• 240-Robert at epguides.com
• www.240-ROBERT.com